Coleus plant named ‘UF20-134-1’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of  Coleus  ( Coleus scutellarioides ) plant named ‘UF20-134-1’, selected for having a combination of desirable traits that make it well-suited for good performance as an annual plant in the summer landscape. ‘UF20-134-1’ has foliage that is consistent deep red across the plant, with distinct chartreuse spots and leaf margins. ‘UF20-134-1’ is an extremely vigorous cultivar, which is not typical of most predominantly red-foliage-colored  Coleus  cultivars. It has a compact, upright and spreading habit, but it is more highly branched and uniform in shape compared to other red-foliage-colored  Coleus  cultivars.

Genus and species: Coleus scutellarioides.

Cultivar denomination: ‘UF20-134-1’.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLCIATIONS

N/A.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF FEDERAL RESEARCH SUPPORT

N/A.

BACKGROUND OF THE NEW CULTIVAR

The invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Coleus plant named ‘UF20-134-1’. The new cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ originated from an open pollination conducted in May-November 2019 in Gainesville, Fla., between the female Coleus plant ‘UF18-95-5’ (unpatented) and an unknown male Coleus plant. A single seedling was chosen in May 2020 for further asexual propagation in Gainesville, Fla.

The new cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ has been reproduced asexually for over 18 months through vegetative meristem tip cuttings and has been found to retain its distinctive characteristics through successive asexual propagations. ‘UF20-134-1’ was first propagated asexually by meristem tip cuttings in May 2020 in Gainesville, Fla., and has remained true-to-type since that time.

Plant Breeder's Rights for the new cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ have not been applied for, and ‘UF20-134-1’ has not been made publicly available more than one year prior to the filing date of this application.

When compared to the female parent ‘UF18-95-5’, the new cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ has an upright and spreading habit allowing it to grow more horizontal than vertical and is more vigorous and well-branched than ‘UF18-95-5’. Leaves on ‘UF20-134-1’ are uniformly colored deep red across the entire plant, with chartreuse (yellow green) spots that are consistent in size and in distribution. In contrast, ‘UF18-95-5’ has similar foliage color and spotting pattern; however, ‘UF18-95-5’ is much less vigorous than ‘UF20-134-1’.

The new cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ was selected for its excellent vigor, lateral branching, uniform overall habit, and intense red colored foliage in both sun and shade. It is novel because it has uniformly distributed chartreuse spotting across all leaves. Additionally, ‘UF20-134-1’ was selected because it does not produce flowers, so leaf drop is minimized late season in the landscape. It performs well in sun and shade and has excellent vigor to withstand the harsh selection conditions our plants are subjected to in full sun trials in Gainesville, Fla.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The new cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype of the new cultivar may vary with variations in environment and cultural practices such as temperature, light intensity, fertilization, irrigation, and application of plant growth regulators without any change in genotype.

The following are the most outstanding and distinguishing characteristics of ‘UF20-134-1’ when grown under normal horticultural practices in Gainesville, Fla.: ‘UF20-134-1’ has the combination of vigorous, compact, upright and spreading growth habit, excellent heat tolerance, and consistent deep red-colored leaves with chartreuse spots that are significantly different than other Coleus plants; it has superior stability in foliage color in both sun and shade conditions, maintaining stable color in all conditions; it has excellent lateral branching, making it suitable for propagators and producers; and ‘UF20-134-1’ has been observed to have long-season performance in landscape trials in Gainesville, Fla.

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

This new Coleus cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ is illustrated by the accompanying photographs, which show the plant's form and foliage. The colors shown are as true as can be reasonably obtained by conventional photographic procedures. FIGS. 2-5 were taken from plants grown ten weeks from unrooted cuttings in February-April 2022 in a glass-covered greenhouse in Gainesville, Fla.

FIG. 1 shows the pedigree of the new Coleus cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ as shown and described herein;

FIG. 2 shows the growth habit, form, and foliage of the new Coleus cultivar;

FIG. 3 shows a close-up view of the foliage of the new Coleus cultivar;

FIG. 4 shows the adaxial side of an immature leaf (left) and a mature leaf (right) of the new Coleus cultivar with corresponding R.H.S. color designations; and

FIG. 5 shows the abaxial side of an immature leaf (left) and a mature leaf (right) of the new Coleus cultivar with corresponding R.H.S. color designations.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE CULTIVAR

Foliage color was determined under full sun conditions in the middle of the day in a glass-covered greenhouse. Color references are to The R.H.S. Colour Chart of The Royal Horticultural Society of London (R.H.S.), 2007 5th Edition. Coleus leaves are rarely one solid color but encompass hues, shades and tints, and color patterns differ from one genotype to another due to varying levels of variegation. The following detailed description of ‘UF20-134-1’ was obtained using ten-week-old plants grown from unrooted cuttings in February-April 2022 in a glass-covered greenhouse in Gainesville, Fla. The plants were propagated in mist for ten days after cuttings were stuck, then grown in one-gallon pots for approximately eight and a half additional weeks.

Botanical Description

-   Botanical classification:     -   -   Family.—Lamiaceae.         -   Botanical name.—Coleus scutellarioides.         -   Common name.—Coleus.         -   Cultivar.—‘UF20-134-1’. -   Parentage:     -   -   Female or seed parent.—‘UF18-95-5’.         -   Male or pollen parent.—Unknown. -   Propagation:     -   -   Type cuttings.—Vegetative meristems having at least 1 node.         -   Time to initiate roots.—3-4 days.         -   Time to produce a rooted cutting.—7-10 days.         -   Root habit.—Fibrous.         -   Root description.—Callus forms in 2-3 days, roots initiate             in 3-4 days and become a highly branched cutting in 7-10             days. -   Plant description:     -   -   Habit.—Compact, upright, and spreading.         -   Height (from top of soil).—40-45 cm.         -   Width (horizontal plant diameter).—70-75 cm. -   Branches:     -   -   Quantity per plant.—Approximately 12.         -   Branch color.—RHS 147B (yellow green).         -   Texture.—Smooth.         -   Pubescence.—Not present.         -   Stem description.—Square-shaped stem.         -   Branch diameter.—0.8-0.9 cm at the base of a 34-cm-long             branch.         -   Branch length.—34-36 cm.         -   Internode length.—6 cm measured at mid-branch.         -   Anthocyanin.—Not present. -   Leaves:     -   -   Quantity of leaves per branch.—Approximately 20.         -   Arrangement.—Opposite.         -   Fragrance.—Not fragrant.         -   Shape.—Ovate.         -   Length.—16-17 cm.         -   Width.—11-12 cm.         -   Apex.—Broadly acute.         -   Base.—Attenuate.         -   Margin.—Crenate.         -   Leaf texture.—Upper surface: Pulverulent. Lower surface:             Smooth.         -   Pubescence.—Not present.         -   Venation color, mature leaf.—Upper surface: RHS N186C             (greyish red). Lower surface: RHS 182C (dark pink).         -   Venation color, immature leaf.—Upper surface: RHS N186C             (greyish red). Lower surface: RHS 181C (red).         -   Venation pattern.—Upper surface: Reticulate. Lower surface:             Reticulate.         -   Color, immature leaf.—Upper surface, major color: RHS 183A             (dark red). Upper surface, margins: RHS 144A (yellow green).             Upper surface, spots: RHS N144A (yellowish green). Lower             surface, major color: RHS 187B (dark red). Lower surface,             spots: RHS 144B (yellow green).         -   Color, mature leaf.—Upper surface, major color: RHS 183A             (dark red). Upper surface, margins: RHS 144A (yellowish             green). Upper surface, spots: RHS N144C (yellow green).             Lower surface, major color: RHS 187B (dark red). Lower             surface, spots: RHS 144B (yellow green).         -   Petiole length.—4-5 cm.         -   Petiole diameter.—0.3-0.4 cm.         -   Petiole color, mature leaf.—RHS 146B (yellow green).         -   Petiole color, immature leaf.—RHS 144C (yellow green).         -   Petiole texture.—Smooth, no pubescence. -   Flowers and seeds: Flowers and seeds have not been observed to date     during formal trials in Gainesville, Fla. -   Fruit/seed set: Fruit/seed not observed. -   Disease and insect resistance: Disease and insect resistance is     typical of the species, thus no claims are made of any superior     disease or insect resistance with this cultivar. The most common     insect pests observed on this plant in Gainesville, Fla. have been     long-tailed or citrus mealybugs (Pseudococcus spp.), which occur on     older stock plant material held in the greenhouse for over 3-4     months. Impatiens Necrotic Spot Virus (Bunyaviridae) has also been     observed in plants confined in greenhouses with mixed crops     (peppers) infected with Western flower thrips (Frankliniella     occidentalis). The most common pathogen of this species in the U.S.     is downy mildew (Perononspora lamii). This pathogen has been     observed in stock materials grown closely together in cooler growing     seasons.

Comparison with Known Cultivars

When the new cultivar ‘UF20-134-1’ is compared to the commercial cultivar ‘UF16-90-3’ (unpatented, commercial name “Rediculous”), ‘UF20-134-1’ has leaves colored dark red with an equal distribution of yellow green spots across the entire leaf surface, whereas ‘UF16-90-3’ has leaves colored entirely dark red with no spots. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A new and distinct Coleus scutellarioides plant named ‘UF20-134-1’ as shown and described herein. 